‘The Brutalist’ director says Oscar-nominated film has made him “zero dollars”

nme.com:

The Brutalist has revealed in a new interview that he’s made “zero dollars” from the acclaimed film.The Brutalist – which arrived in cinemas last month – has been sweeping the awards circuit this year, most recently winning several awards including Best Director and Best Actor at the BAFTAs.The architectural epic is also tipped as a major favourite to win Best Picture at the upcoming Oscars next month.

Yet despite the film’s acclaim and success, it appears that the film hasn’t raked in any money for its filmmakers.Appearing on the latest episode of the WTF with Marc Maron podcast, Corbet claimed that The Brutalist – and his previous film 2018’s Vox Lux – have made him and his wife and creative partner Mona Fastvold “zero dollars”, adding that he’s recently “directed three advertisements in Portugal” that mark “the first time that I had made any money in years.”When asked by host Marc Maron if he was speaking figuratively, Corbet doubled down on his claims: “Actually, zero.

We had to just sort of live off of a paycheck from three years ago.”Corbet went on to claim that the financial burden of making films isn’t unique to him: “I’ve spoken to many filmmakers that have the films that are nominated this year that can’t pay their rent.

I mean, that’s a real thing.”Besides directing a film for months, directors are also expected to participate in the film festivals and awards circuit even if they’re “not paid to be promoting”, said Corbet. “If you look at certain films that premiered in Cannes, that was almost a year ago… I mean, our film premiered in September.